Out with the old, in with the new

The Holidays are over, we celebrated the birth of our Savior and started a brand new year! And among all the busyness, and festivities of the holiday season, I overlooked one of the ministries God put me in charge of.....this blog!! I had a Christmas message, but never took the time to set down and write it. The same goes for Thanksgiving and New Years. I got sidetracked....really, really sidetracked. Then came regret...I can't believe I didn't write about being thankful, or the birth of Jesus, or a fresh start!! How could I have forgotten!! I concentrated more on doing than being, being still that is. Taking time to slow down and listen to what God has to say.
I was still yesterday morning in Church. God spoke. The message was on pressing on and grabbing hold of that for which Christ grabbed a hold of us, and not looking behind but moving toward that which is ahead. The scripture was Philippians 3:12-13 12."Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead" (NIV)

The "that" which Paul is pressing on to take hold of, and why Jesus has taken hold of us is not one, but several things. It is: 1. A personal relationship with God The Father and with Jesus. 2. The Kingdom of Heaven. 3. Grace and mercy. 4. Righteousness in Christ. In other words, perfection in Christ. Yes Paul has these things already, what he means when he says "not that I have obtained all this" is that he hasn't the fullness or completeness of it yet, as you see he goes on to say "or have already been made perfect" This is why he "presses on" so he can deepen his relationship with God and have more and more grace, mercy, and righteousness through Christ. Paul knew if he ever thought that he obtained it all, he would stop pressing on. He didn't want to be content with his current level of spirituality, so he continually strived for perfection in Christ and we should be striving for this too, but all to often our past gets in the way.

Our past, the thing that likes to come back and haunt us and holds us down, keeping from moving forward. You know, past life (our old self/sin nature), past mistakes, past regrets, etc. But did you know that good things from our past can also hold us back too. Paul never specifies about the past in verse 13, whether it's good or bad, he simply states " forgetting what is behind". Let's look at it. Once again Paul is assuring his us that he hasn't attained all of this, "Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it." Then he let's us know what he does to aide in fulfilling his desire, "But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead." Paul knows he can't look back and continue to move forward, because if does he will get off track. So he has to either stay put, or move toward what is ahead. As I said before it is not only the bad stuff in our past that can hold us back, but good things too. With all the bad things we dwell on it is nice to be able to concentrate on something wonderful in our lives. But if we dwell in the good places too long we become content, which after awhile brings about a fear of change, not wanting to move from our comfort zone. Then it has become an idol. This is why Paul doesn't specify bad past or good past, because any part of our past can become a hindrance.

So what about forgetting, does this mean we try to completely shut out or block certain memories so we can move forward? Of course not, 1. It's impossible, unless you get amnesia. Memories are stored away in our subconscious mind and though we don't always remember certain things, they are still there. 2. We need to use our past experiences to minister to others who are going through the same experience, which also keeps us humble. Finally so we can continually thank God for his abundant grace and mercy, and the many blessings and gifts he has given us, the greatest being Jesus! This too, keeps us humble. What Paul meant by forgetting is not to keep recalling the past, or dwelling on it, because that's when it becomes an obstacle. Especially if it consumes us to the point where that's all you think about. Been there, done that! We need to get past the past, Let go and Let God!! Out with the old, in with the new.
Paul's striving was not self-effort, but a passion and desire put in him by the Holy Spirit, which drove him to not be content or satisfied with a certain level of spiritual growth. And it was by yielding to the Holy Spirit that he was able to forget what was behind and strain toward what was ahead. We must daily get on our knees and get into the word, continually seeking His face, His wisdom, and His will for our lives

Pray: Father I relinquish my will into your hands today, so that I may live this day according to your will. And I ask you to show me anything in my past that I'm not letting go of so that through you, I can work on releasing myself from it and move forward. I pray you continue to put on my heart, changes that need to be made in my life, and my character so that I may better serve you Lord. I humbly ask this in Jesus name Amen

In closing I would just like to say, I am no longer dwelling on the fact that I dropped the ball on the blog ministry, and now with that monkey off my back I can move on ahead with new posts. 2010 I welcome you. Thank You Jesus!!

What's wrong with me? Why can't I stop!!

What's wrong with you? Nothing. You're human. You are going to sin. The Bible tells us in Romans 3:23" for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."(NKJV) It's a constant, if not daily, battle to live a Christian life. The Bible says in Galatians 5:17 " For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish."(NKJV) The New Living Translation explains it in more detail, "The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions." Even a great man of God, the Apostle Paul, struggled with it. Paul writes in Romans 7:19 "For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing." (NIV). Of course, this does not mean it is okay to sin, just that it is nearly impossible not to,(notice I said nearly impossible, for it says in Matt. 10:27 " for with God all things are possible."), but God's ever abundant grace and mercy is upon us and He forgives us. Jesus paid our debt on the cross over 2000 years ago, and it is by His blood that we are forgiven.

So, how can you at least keep your sin nature under submission? Paul writes in Galatians 5:16 "I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh." (NKJV), or as the NLT puts it, "So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves." The key word in the First version is fulfill. It doesn't say you are not going to think about sin, but by walking in the Spirit you won't carry it out. By being in tune with the Holy Spirit you are guarded against taking action on your natural man's thoughts. You will not want to fulfill them, because you know it is wrong and against God's will for your life. The Holy Spirit is light and your sin nature is darkness, it is impossible for the two mix. Light always chases away darkness.

Walking in the Spirit, as said before, simply means letting the Holy Spirit guide your life, so it lines up with God's will. But with the distraction's that come with day to day life you might find it a bit challenging to maintain your walk continually. Therefore picture a miniature satellite dish inside your head that can only be tuned into the God Channel. Start off your day with prayer and bible reading, then throughout the day repeat a scripture that really ministers to you, or a play a praise song in your head, or simply talk to God. Doing these things moves the Holy Spirit that dwells within you and God communicates with us through His Holy Spirit (Hebrews 10:14-16). So now the Spirit ministers to your heart, making it simpler to yield to what is right and to deny temptation. As your relationship with Jesus grows deeper, you will become less and less wanting of the "old things". Will there still be battles? Yes. Will there still be struggles? Yes. But remember: 2 Corinthians 12:9 And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me